The sportswriter’s life: Two views of life in the scribbling game

So you want to be a sportswriter. You might want to read two interesting takes on the sportswriting life, one of which almost has the first sentence of this post as its headline.

First, longtime New York Times scribe Gerald Eskenazi’s “Pity the sportswriter” in the Columbia Journalism Review argues that “being a sportswriter is one of the hardest—if not the trickiest—jobs in journalism.”

The other folks at The New York Times used to call us the toy department. But what I discovered during my 40-something years writing sports was that, when I wrote about an event that wasn’t strictly sports, it was an easier assignment.

As surprising as it may seem to the non-sportswriter, we are not born with a distinct knowledge of the difference among the foil, epee, and sabre in fencing. Nor did we grow up with the arcane language of figure-skating, appreciating an axel jump or a camel spin—telling a good one from a bad one.

But beyond the expertise is this: You’ve got to write a darn-good story as well, incorporating adjectives and knowledge, avoiding the clichés that infect much of sports reporting, and do it all under a tight deadline.

Eskenazi argues for the honest approach when you find yourself covering a sport you don’t know that much about. He recalls his first day on the New York Jets beat for the Times in 1975. He introduced himself to Joe Namath and confessed he didn’t know anything about football. Namath was delighted, and, Eskenazi writes, “for years afterward, whenever Joe would see me, he’d introduce me to people by saying, ‘He was an honest sportswriter.’”

For a view from the present-day trenches, read “So You Want to Be a Beat Writer …” in the Hardball Times. Fangraphs writer Eno Sarris interviews several baseball beat writers about their lives. Disclosure: Eno is a friend of mine.

The writers talk about the punishing travel, sleep deprivation and how difficult it is to eat healthy or exercise. They point out that tight deadlines can be painful and getting to talk to ballplayers is not the treat many fans think it is. Working at night and traveling a lot usually means little or no social life. And if you won’t mind that because you’re married and have kids, think of what your being away from home 120 nights a year means to your family. Get ready to miss a lot of milestones.

“There’s a reason few beat writers reach my age,” says San Francisco Chronicle Giants beat writer Henry Schulman. His age isn’t given but he’s a friend too and I think he’s in his mid-50s. “Most decide they need to quit so they can have a more normal family life.” Sarris notes that the divorce rate among beat writers is high.

Of course, there are things that make it worthwhile. “Well,” Schulman says he thinks every New Year’s Eve, “I fooled them for another year.” C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer says, “There’s still few things I love more than the view of a baseball field in front of me.”

It can be a rewarding life, but it’s a tough one and it’s not for everyone. “So you want to be a beat writer,” Sarris writes. “Are you sure?”